Equifax to add 'Buy Now, Pay Later' programs to credit history
ATLANTA - The ‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ trend is a good thing if you manage your money well. If you don’t, it’s another ride down low credit lane. Either way, Equifax plans to keep track of your progress.
The Atlanta-based credit monitoring company will begin in February to include your payment history with BNPL programs.
CHECK THESE THINGS OFF YOUR END-OF-YEAR FINANCE TO-DO LIST
No doubt many holiday shoppers used the option to try one of the programs offered by many retailers and managed by third parties like Affirm, Laterpay, or Klarna. This can help you to purchase an item out of your budget and pay for it over time.
But, just like paying on time or lay away, this new, modern-day iteration of paying in installments has its pros and its cons.
These programs are convenient as they’re often readily built into the purchase. But, be aware of potential impulse spending.
These four-six payments, whatever the schedule is, is generally interest-free. That’s good. But, if your payment is late, that’s when you pay a penalty.
‘Buy Now, Pay Later’ can be cheaper to use to make purchases than a credit card if you have a high interest rate. And it can help you to build credit. But again, if you blow it, it can blow up your credit.
TransUnion and Experien are expected to follow suit.